


Tear Them Down, Build Me Up

by Inkworld



Category: The Good Doctor (TV 2017)
Genre: #redinstead, Acceptance not awareness, Boycott Autism Speaks, Canon Autistic Character, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-17
Updated: 2017-12-17
Packaged: 2019-02-15 21:50:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,070
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13040136
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Inkworld/pseuds/Inkworld
Summary: It's April Second and Shaun was perfectly on time to work, but once there something prevents him from going where he's supposed to be. Claire and Jared help him get done faster.(Rated for cursing. It's not excessive.)





	Tear Them Down, Build Me Up

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [That damn poster](https://archiveofourown.org/works/12903093) by [WolfKomoki](https://archiveofourown.org/users/WolfKomoki/pseuds/WolfKomoki). 



> I read something on here where Shaun runs off crying because of some A$ posters, but wanted something where he has a more... Proactive Reaction.
> 
> I wrote this in like two hours and I've never tried to write something this short so I'm not sure how I did (I was afraid I'd try to expand it if I gave myself more time). Tell me what you think?

St Bonaventure has always been a safe space for Shaun. There was the ableism, of course, but that was everywhere and here at least he knew he could prove his competence--which he also knew he couldn't always do everywhere else. Anyway, everyone that Shaun interacted with regularly was coming around.

April first was as anxiety inducing as always, but Jared only pranked Claire, and Clair had to retaliate. Everyone else was too mature to take part.

Come April Second (it deserved emphasis, he'd just managed to forget that fact) he had walked into work much more relaxed than he had the day before. He fiddled with his hands and swayed as he walked, tiptoeing slightly.

His calm was shattered and he stilled completely when he saw the large mostly blue poster on the wall near his boss's office. His heals touched the ground and his knuckles turned white. After a moment his lips parted and he tilted his head.

He had noticed several blue posters on the walls on his way here, but he hadn't processed and recognized them for what they were. Hadn't read the words or noticed the little rainbow bow in the corner until he'd slowed to knock on Melendez' door.

Now he couldn't process anything else.

Claire walked up beside him, smiling and greeting him before realizing he wasn't going to respond and switching her attention to what he was looking at. Her eyes widened. "Oh, Shaun..."

She reached out at the same time that he did. She stopped, remembering that he didn't like to be touched, but he did not stop.

Both hands going towards the top of the poster he ripped most of it from the wall, crumpling it and stuffing it in a pocket.

"Shaun!"

He turned, looking back the way he had come for another poster and speed walking over.

"Shaun, wait, you can't just..."

But he wasn't listening, though he realized that she was there eventually, if only peripherally. He also noticed that Jared joined her, though he wasn't sure if he had grabbed five or seven posters before Claire and he started to help.

Shaun wasn't sure what floor they were on but he had removed nearly thirty posters before the words, "What the Hell is going on here?" cut through the air.

Shaun dropped the poster he was holding and his hands flinched towards his ears, but he stopped himself and picked up the poster and threw it in the garbage can that Jared or Claire must have procured at some point.

He moved forwards, but Melendez moved in front of him. "I want someone to tell me what the Hell is going on here. You're destroying hospital property."

Shaun has a fleeting thought that Claire must have told Melendez that he didn't like questions and another that that was too much of a simplification.

Shaun's hand comes up to ruffle his own hair.

He knows he should explain himself. Jared and Claire were just trying to help but he hasn't spoken since he got to the hospital today (on time, thank you; Melendez must have come looking for them because they were late now) and the idea of breaking that barier now on top of the emotional turmoil of seeing those posters all over his... his _home_... is just to much.

Jared speaks up from somewhere behind Shaun, "I don't know whose sick idea it was to put these up, but we can't just leave them where anybody could see."

Shaun's not looking to see the expression of clear surprise on Neil's face.

"What do you mean 'sick idea'? Isn't it Autism Awareness Month?"

Claire gasps. "Did you know that they were doing this?!"

Shaun laughed, correcting someone was enough to help him start talking, "He and Aoki must have orchestrated it. Doctor Glassman knows better."

"Andrews helped, and what do you mean by 'knows better', Murphy?"

Shaun frowns and moves around Melendez to the next poster. He ruffles his hair with one hand and rips the poster down with the other. Not bothering crumple it up or throw it away.

He'd figured it was... Not Doctor Glassman, but hadn't thought about the possible involvement of his boss until Melendez had said the word Awareness.

He tore down another poster.

And to think, at the beginning of the day he'd been thinking about how much the people that hadn't respected him before were coming around.

He ruffled his hair again.

He moved on.

Claire was talking. Then Jared or Melendez. Then Claire again. Someone swore.

He ruffled his hair.

Poster. Poster. Poster.

He reached the end of the hall by the stair well and managed to stop himself from running up the stairs. He wasn't sure that if he started running anywhere he'd be able to stop for a long time.

He pressed his back to the wall and slid down. He grabbed the nearest poster off the floor and began crumpling and uncrumpling it, trearing it in half and then fourths and eighths. He was rocking a bit and moved further from the wall so he could do so more freely.

"Shaun, Shaun. I don't know if you can even hear me, but I am so sorry, I had no idea."

Shaun laughed. "Not being able to process what you say or not being able to respond are not the same as not hearing you, Doctor Melendez. What did you not know?" He glanced up at the three standing above him, but trying not to cried him.

Neil rolled his eyes. "I didn't know that Autism Speaks was so awful, and I thought you were upset, but if you're still such a smartass you must be alright enough. Claire suggested we put some #RedInstead posters up, where these where. What do you think?"

Shaun stopped rocking. Of course Doctor Melendez didn't know the truth about A$. He'd probably suggested the first group that came up or went with someone else that had done so.

"Can we have some with the Autisticat on them?"

"Autisti... Cat?"

"It's a symbol of the autistic community. A cat with a heart shaped tail and the neurodiversity symbol on their collar. Because cats and many autistic people have similar body language."

"If we can find some to print quickly, sure."

  
"Good."

"... Are we good, then?"

Shaun laughed. "Of course I forgive you for making an honest mistake in a social situation."

**Author's Note:**

> I'd love constructive criticism on any of this, especially the end and whether the little dialogue I've included is in character. I want to write more with these characters and hear what readers think~ :)


End file.
